


Sing Me to Life Idol-Angel

by pinkbowbunny



Category: Dororo (Anime 2019), Dororo (Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Happy Ending, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-26
Updated: 2019-06-02
Packaged: 2020-02-04 12:38:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18604693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkbowbunny/pseuds/pinkbowbunny
Summary: Modern day AU! Angst to start then a happy ending. Hyakkimaru is reborn in the modern era but with many of his former disabilities. There are some joys left in his life though, and one day they help him to find Mio, a girl with the voice of an angel...His father is still an overbearing b@stard but hopefully Nui and Tahoumaru can eventually be more supportive of Hyakkimaru and help him out more, and though Daigo and other negative forces in the world may try to keep them apart, as long as Mio keeps on singing, Hyakkimaru vows he’s going to find his idol, his angel. His love. His soulmate. The woman he lived, died, and came back to life for...





	1. Chapter 1

Present day Japan. Hyakkimaru had been born to a very wealthy and privileged set of parents in this lifetime, and in this age, thanks to the actions taken in a past life, demons were a thing of the past...

However, that didn't mean he was born 'lucky'... His father sometimes even said that he was lucky to even have been born at all, and for days after his birth, his mother Nui had prayed to the gods for a miracle for her son, despite her husband Daigo not-so-secretly wishing they would strike the deformed child down and spare him the hassle instead.

He was quite a sight at first... He was born with tetra-amelia syndrome, missing all four of his limbs. He was also blind and deaf, though thankfully not dumb at least. His progress was very slow, though, and many people often treated him as if he must be an idiot. He finally learned to crawl at just under a year old, inching along the floor like a poor pathetic little worm. But it seemed that show of determination, as well as his mother's persistence, finally got his father to accept him as permanent, even if he never warmed up to him. Especially after his wife gave him a healthy, full and able-bodied son just a few days after Hyakkimaru's first birthday, Tahoumaru. He then immediately focused nearly all of his attention on him instead, and let his wife coddle the cripple like she wanted to, for some reason he could never comprehend...

He did at least buy the boy prosthetic limbs at his wife's insistence, the most intricate and expensive ones money could buy, and as a toddler, they scheduled him for a cochlear implant surgery so that his hearing could be restored. It was difficult at first to adjust, but in time he became grateful for it. He wasn't able to recover his eyesight, but the gift of hearing at the very least gave him something to 'look' forward to on his most difficult days.

Naturally he was a lover of music, mostly classical, but other stuff too, just as long as it was played softly. He took very good care of his hearing and never played it too loudly, in order to preserve it. He wasn't a musical genius but he liked to play a few sweet and harmonic instruments, like the flute, the violin, and the zheng. It was difficult with his prosthetics, even though he could control them and make his fingers move, they weren't as dexterous as a regular limb, and much slower. But he kept practicing, and although he would never become a master, his playing became more even and skilled over time. At the very least it was soothing to his mother and she was proud of him for it, and that was good enough for him, for he loved pleasing her.

He hardly ever spoke to most people, so he couldn't really sing, but he liked to hear others sing for him, as long as they had a nice, sweet voice. His mother usually indulged him with a few songs before bedtime as a child, so now in the future he continued to seek out women who sang with soft voices like hers. His music collection was full of females and hardly any men. Hyakkimaru was especially fond of singers like Enya and the like.

One day, when he was just over sixteen years old, Hyakkimaru was out with his family, shopping for school supplies for his younger brother Tahoumaru. Tahoumaru always got the best clothing and sports equipment he asked for, every time. Hyakkimaru had to beg for anything he really wanted, and only got it about a quarter of the time.

So when he suddenly heard the voice of an angel singing softly down the street, in the single sweetest voice he'd ever encountered, he couldn't bring himself to even ask his father if he could try to go find the source of it, couldn't bear the 'Absolutely not' he was sure to get, and begging never worked in public. Instead, since they hardly even noticed him there with Tahoumaru needing tending to, Hyakkimaru decided to quickly steal away and investigate for himself. Tahoumaru was talking about all the things he wanted, with both of his parent's attention firmly on him. They didn't notice him walking away from the entrance they had just gone through, and rerouting his path down the street instead at all.

Listening closely, he followed several steps behind her for a couple of blocks. She was singing about a red flower. It seemed like a familiar tune to him, even though it wasn't one of the ones his mother was fond of singing for him. For some reason though, it felt as if he'd heard that very song, and this very voice, somewhere before...

Since that was impossible though, he dismissed it, and kept following her until she came to a nearby grocery store. A few other voices suddenly started to speak to her around her. Young voices, not children, but a bit younger than he was, he could tell. The girl sounded similar in age to him, probably 15 or 16 while the others seemed 12-13.

"Here's the rice we need, oneesan!"

"Why thank you!"

"I've got our bag of potatoes! Don't worry oneesan, I can carry it!"

"Oh, how strong you're getting!"

"Oneesan, do you think we can maybe get one of these snacks too...?" Someone was crinkling a bag of chips, or maybe rice crackers.

That sweet happy voice that Hyakkimaru already adored suddenly faltered, and became sad and small and hesitant. "Oh... I'm not sure we should... It's just, we need to make sure we have all the staples we need first this time..."

He stepped forward then, unable to help himself. He felt bad for following the girl like he had, and thought he should do somthing to make up for it. His father always made sure everyone in the family had at least a little pocket money on them in case of an emergency. Well, he got pocket money. Tahoumaru had his own credit card...

Still. He hardly ever used it, and it seemed like they could use it a lot more, so he pulled out the wad of bills from his pocket, took about half and put the other half back, and then approached the girl. "Excuse me... Do you need money? For your groceries? If it's for something you need, I don't mind. Please feel free to accept it..."

She gasped loudly at his sudden offering, in complete disbelief. "Sir! That's so very generous! B-But, I couldn't possibly! That's so much!"

He shrugged. "It's not that much. I don't mind."

She shook her head, taking a closer look at him as she insisted, "You're blind, aren't you? You sweet young man. You're holding large bills there... You really must be more careful. People will take advantage of your kindness. And in any case, even if we could use the money, I wouldn't feel right just taking it from you..."

She started to push his hand away, but he insisted right back, pushing the bills back into her hand and then curling her fingers around them. "I don't need it. I'd rather you have it. But if you feel you must earn it, I do have one request, if you wouldn't mind... I heard you singing just now. That's why I followed you in. I do apologize, it was rude of me... But your voice was just so lovely... Please, if you wouldn't mind, would you sing your song again for me? And you can consider this payment for that. I promise I won't miss it."

The other children started to get excited and tried to encourage her. "Neesan, he only wants to hear you sing! We could eat like kings with that! Please, please?"

She could deny herself, but she couldn't deny them. "Oh... Alright then. If you're sure, I would be happy to..."

So she sang. Her voice was like a gentle stream. Like the feel of flower petals warmed by the sun. It was so delicate, but so alive. Hyakkimaru's insides felt like they were full of bubbles and butterflies...

She sang it again a couple more times for him, feeling like she ought to with how generous he was being. He let himself enjoy it, so at peace right now...

"Your voice is just wonderful." He told her after the third recital. "Have you ever thought of being a singer? You could probably be an Idol with a voice like that, if you wanted to..."

"Oh!" She gasped again at that, almost scandalized by his earnest praise. "An Idol! The very thought! No no, not me, I'm just a simple girl, I'm really not THAT talented, you're much too kind..."

"I'm not being kind. I'm being honest." He insisted, making her blush deep red.

One of the young boys she was with got a little jealous seeing the blush that Hyakkimaru couldn't see. Pouting a little, he asked, not too unkindly, mostly from genuine curiosity and just a little bit of jealous childishness, "Say, what's that you got on your head?"

Mio gasped and shushed him right away, making him blush too now from mild shame as she scolded him, "You shouldn't just ask something like that!"

But Hyakkimaru shook his head. "It's okay. I've heard much ruder comments. It's called a 'cochlear implant'. When I was born, I was deaf, and couldn't hear. Doctors performed surgery on me and put this on me, and now I can hear. Without it I might not have ever been able to learn to talk..."

She gasped, this time excited and happy again. "Oh! How wonderful! It's amazing what doctors can do these days! I wish I could do something meaningful and amazing like that. Unfortunately I think singing is one of my only talents..."

He was about to insist that really wasn't the case, that he was being honest with her, but then suddenly a harsh voice boomed from not too far behind him, "YOU! What on earth are you doing here?! Your mother made us pause Tahoumaru's shopping trip to look for you! Damn troublemaker..."

His father began to approach, his footsteps close to being stomps. He panicked, embarrassed and not wanting to part from her so soon. He knew he had no choice though, so he quickly leaned in next to her ear before his father reached them, and whispered to her, "Please keep singing. You're wonderful. If you keep singing, maybe I can find you again someday..."

His father grabbed him by the stump of one of his arms that was still left at the top, just above where it connected to his prosthetic. He growled into his ear but said nothing more to him, instead opting to harass the girl instead. "You... I've seen you before. With a colleague. You're an escort, aren't you? Filthy woman! Stay away from my sons!"

The poor girl was struck with shame, trembling at being called out in public like that. The other children quickly pulled her away before he could say any more to her, and thankfully he let her go without saying anything further, instead choosing to drag his unruly son away.

Hyakkimaru tuned him out as he began to scold and berate him, literally switching his hearing aid off when his back was turned. He heard quite enough cruelty from his father that day, and refused to listen to any more. He didn't care if she was an escort. He didn't care if she wanted to take every bit of money he had as his father insisted, though he already knew she would never. He wanted nothing more than to hear that voice again. That voice that was as familiar as the earth under his feet, and yet more beautiful and otherworldly than all the meaningless descriptions of heaven his blind mind had ever been given.

'Please...' He prayed to the gods, for probably the first time ever. He had no reason to expect they'd be any kinder to him than they'd already been all his life, after all. But even more desperate because of that fact, he forged ahead, begging any god that cared to listen to him, 'Please... No matter what happens... Let her keep singing...'

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

(( These poor kids got it rough, but I’m determined to give em a happy ending this time! Hopefully, if I can keep up the will to write the rest of what I have in mind, and if I can keep from NOT DYING IN THIS FRIGGIN HEAT UUUUUGH. XD;; So, please comment or kudo if you like it! :D ^^ ))


	2. Chapter 2

Hyakkimaru had been very, very depressed the following days, weeks... A month went by, and he still felt shame and sadness over what his cruel father had said to that wonderful girl. He hoped beyond hope that he could apologize for it someday, and that she would forgive him...

One day, his brother unexpectedly came knocking on his door, knocking softly, even while he knew father was away, as if he suspected his father might still be able to know what he was doing while at work. Daigo didn't usually let the boys interact by themselves, outside of public family functions, and even then there was a very certain way they were both told to act around each other. Hyakkimaru was to keep his distance, praise his brother and not mention himself, but only if anyone bothered to ask him anything. Tahoumaru was to assist his mother with Hyakkimaru only if she really needed it, too. Once in a great while Tahoumaru might bother him for a short visit while father was away, but the visits were few and far between. Short and sweet for the most part, but sometimes with a bitter aftertaste...

Tahoumaru was for the most part a kind young man, he had no desire to go out of his way to hurt anyone, and indeed wanted people to think he was helpful and upstanding. He had a healthy sense of pride and honor, usually. But Daigo kept him close under his thumb. He very rarely let his stray too far, or do too much, paranoid that an accident might leave him in any way similar to his brother. Daigo would die or kill before that happened to his Perfect Son. He kept him close. Daigo could often be seen clutching him right next to him, shielding his ear with a hand and whispering things into it with a stern look on his face. Hyakkimaru sometimes heard the things he whispered into his ear. They were seldom fair or kind words towards anyone else but the two of them...

So, naturally a little on edge, Hyakkimaru opened the door and let him in, waiting quietly for Tahoumaru to start talking.

He sat down on the chair at Hyakkimaru's desk, and began, "Hey big bro... You kinda haven't seemed like youself lately. And I'm pretty sure I know why. Dad told me about you running into a girl a while ago... And yanno, I just wanted to say... I actually disagree with father! I disagree with him pretty often, but especially on this! I don't think it was fair of him to come between you that day! I mean - A guy like you doesn't get the chance to talk to a girl very often! Who cares if she's an escort, it's not like you can be too picky-choosey anyways, right?"

Well, he was right. And a jerk. He wasn't trying to be a jerk, he just thought those were the facts and didn't consider how it felt to be shamed by something you couldn't help, since he was perfect and had never been shamed for probably almost anything before. Despite the tactless way of saying things, he was actually trying to be kind though, as he went on, "I noticed you've been seeming really depressed lately too... You haven't been playing your music as much and it's been a lot slower than usual. I'm accostomed to hearing you play in the background while I do my homework, and I noticed it was sounding strange lately... You miss her, don't you? I think it's cute you found a girl you like. I want to see you two together again! So I was thinking, can you tell me anything about her that can help us find her? She's an escort right? So that means we can just find where she works and hire her, then we can set you up on a date with her!"

Hyakkimaru took a deep, long, slow breath, and resisted the urge to sigh it out too harshly. Overall he was actually impressed by how much his brother had bothered to think of him this time. He was actually trying really hard to do a kind act for him. But Hyakkimaru shook his head all the same. "Thank you, Tahoumaru. I really would like to see her again. But I don't think I have any information that can help us find her. I forgot to ask her name, and I don't know what she looks like. I barely know anything about her, and besides that, I wouldn't want to just hire her. I don't want her to think I only view her as a thing to be bought. She's a human with her own feelings and talents..."

"Oh... W-Well of course she is! Escorts usually have many talents to entertain others! I'm sure she must be very talented to catch your discerning ear, big bro. I'm sure she won't think you only view her like that, but following her in her personal life might seem strange and scary to a girl instead of well-meaning. Maybe it would be better to meet under professional settings instead? Maybe if she likes you the most, she'll quit being an escort and be your girlfriend! I've heard of stuff like that happening! It sounds romantic, doesn't it?" He had apparently given this quite a bit of thought, and seemed excited. A little too excited.

Hyakkimaru sighed, and paused to consider it in his head for a few seconds. Tahoumaru clearly wasn't thinking things through and had a very idealized thought of how things would go, but Hyakkimaru was also very sorely tempted. He knew a man with his troubles would have an impossible time finding a single girl out of the millions around him without someone to help him. Perhaps he should just leave her be. But he wanted so badly to hear her sweet voice again...

"I... Guess we can see if you can try to find her..." He finally agreed, nodding. "But all I know is that she had a beautiful singing voice. She sang a song about a red flower. And she had a few other younger children following her. Maybe younger siblings, or maybe just children she helps to take care of...

"That's actually plenty of info for me. I mean, we're rich, bro. We can pay people to find us a needle in a haystack. I know, I can get Mutsu and Hyogo to do it!"

Tahoumaru’s right and left hand men, of course. They were his oldest friends since childhood, a strong and helpful brother and sister pair who were also very quiet and obedient, they were the only ones Daigo allowed to assist his sons. In exchange for their assistance Daigo had a college fund set up for them, and they did extra odd-jobs from Tahoumaru for extra spare coin on the side. His brother considered them his best friends though, not just employees. Sometimes Hyakkimaru suspected his brother might consider one of them even more than that...

So it proceeded, and Hyakkimaru allowed it, just hoping and praying he could actually find her again. To his surprise and elation, but also his following nervousness, Tahoumaru came to him again about a week later, announcing that Mutsu had managed to locate the girl, probably. If not their first guess they had a few others, but it turned out their first intuition was correct, Hyakkimaru knew it as soon as she entered the room and exclaimed upon seeing and recognizing him first, "Oh! It's you!"

They weren't in any tacky sort of love motel setting, it was a standard room meant for first meetings and discussions of compatibility. Or in this case, very unexpected reunions...  
"Please excuse me for seeking you out like this..." Hyakkimaru tried to begin, but it seemed Tahoumaru was prepared to take over for him.

"Brother, it's fine! Don't worry! I know you can't see but the lady you've been so curious about is as lovely as the voice you've been bragging about! So this surely isn't the first time she's been requested specifically by a client, right milady?"

Hyakkimaru resisted the urge to smack his own forehead and groan. He instead tried his best to intervene, "Tahoumaru. That doesn't matter. Please excuse me all the same, and my apologies for what my father said as well-"

Tahoumaru still butted in though, convinced he was the charming one and that his brother needed his help for this to go 'smoothly'. "Brother, please! I'm just trying to look out for you. I can't help but notice that you often expect too little of yourself." Wait? What? He didn't -expect- too little, he just didn't bother asking for much very often because he knew he wouldn't get it. He knew just what to expect, which was little. Tahoumaru you idiot... And while Hyakkimaru was still marvelling over that, his dumb little bro went on, "Like I already said I wouldn't judge a lady just because she's an escort, I agree with you there! And I agree father was probably too harsh on the lady! I think it's really hypocritical for men to judge women like that! Right, milady?"

He now directed his attention at the girl, who waited patiently for him to make his point. "After all, if men want to see an escort, then there has to be a woman willing to be an escort. In my opinion, Father can't judge you unless he's also willing to judge his colleague for the same thing. And probably himself. Of course I wouldn't want to know if that were the case but he's certainly never very romantic with our mother, which I can't help but feel is a shame... In any case, men and women want to be romantic with and flirt with each other, that's just natural. And my brother, even with his disabilities, is still a human who has those same natural feelings too. But considering the harsh hand life has dealt him, as his brother I feel obligated to make sure he makes a good choice! So madam, I hope you don't mind me asking, but..." Wait, why was he calling her 'madam' now instead of 'milady'...

Confused into silence, Hyakkimaru and the young lady let the other man finish his point, "Do you mostly just flirt with your clients, you know, entertain them and be arm candy? Or are you the kind of escort that... Goes all the way? I just want to make sure the woman my brother is seeking is still an upstanding one, you see."

There was barely the briefest of pauses, before Hyakkimaru barked at his brother, mortified, "TAHOUMARU! We haven't even asked her NAME yet!?"

The younger Kagemitsu blinked, now a bit uncomfortable seeing the look of shock on the girl's face instead of understanding. "O-Oh... M-My apologies, miss. I was just concerned, I didn't think you'd-?" He was clearly most confused about why his brother was upset, and not concerned why she might be. After all it was a good thing overall if she turned out to be almost as naive as his brother on such things, but surely an escort had to know what he was talking about...?

She did. But his older brother insisted, "Tahoumaru, it doesn't even matter to me anyways! Don't you think she'd have her own reasons? Not everyone has the same circumstances as us. I firmly believe that under the right circumstances, a sin can be forgiven, if it's even a sin at all..."

Tahoumaru looked up at the girl. Hyakkimaru looked down at his lap, and the girl glanced away at a wall, hesitant at first, then flowing like a waterfall. "My name is Mio, by the way..." Mio. So simple and yet so elegant, it echoed through Hyakkimaru's mind like the rustling of the wind through the grass. So familiar... "And... I understand, why that might be an issue... Its... It's alright, if you must know, then... Yes. I have, a couple of times before. When the money being offered was too much to turn down, and we needed it too badly. And I'm not ashamed of it. As you said, I had my own reasons. My little brother, and the other orphaned and abandoned children at our apartment who need my help, I became an escort to help them! I just thought... Why should all of us have to drop out of school and work? If I worked hard enough, then the rest of them could have a better life... That's why I chose to do it, and that's why I'm not ashamed. It's to help my family survive, and thrive..."

Of course, that all made perfect sense to Hyakkimaru, and was about what he had expected. But Tahoumaru seemed genuinely shocked, "W-Wait... But, it's not really so much of a choice if you have to do it to survive...?"

She slowly shrugged, and shook her head. "I guess not... I mean, would YOU do something like this as a job unless you were really desperate?"

Tahoumaru's eyes kept getting wider, as if he was being hit with an epiphany. "Wha... No! Goodness no! I'd never want to have to do something like..." He had a not-too brief think inside his head, then slowly gasped, "Father and his his colleagues... They're absolutely -horrible- for seeking out young women in such vulnerable positions! This entire establishment is founded on exploitation! You're the same as any other woman on the street and I just asked you-!"

Hyakkimaru couldn't see it but his younger brother had just gone completely red from top to bottom, and with a gasp and a smacking of his hand over his mouth, he got up and bent down into a low bow. "Oh my god! I'm SO sorry! I was an idiot, please forgive me!"

Hyakkimaru sighed. His brother WAS an idiot but thankfully he tended to catch on quick, and Mio also sighed, waving away his silliness. "It's alright. I'm kind of used to clueless rich boys. You actually catch on quick compared to most of the others..."

To deflect from the embarrassment he felt, Tahoumaru quickly motioned to his brother. "Ah! Right! Thank you! But as I was mentioning, the reason we sought you out is because my brother was quite taken with you! Um, if you can forgive how uncouth his dumb little brother was, I'd really appreciate it if you gave him a chance to explain his feelings!"

Hyakkimaru sighed again, this time with relief. Finally he shut up and let the two of them have a moment, and the sweet voiced angel glanced back at him, "May I know your name as well? Then I'd be glad to hear about your feelings..."

He restrained the urge to groan. "Hyakkimaru. And my oblivious little brother is named Tahoumaru. We're the sons of Daigo Kagemitsu, but we wish for him not to know about us being here. I... I know he'd disapprove of you, but I don't care. Mio, I know I've barely met you, but... Your voice makes me feel like nothing I've ever felt before. Because I'm blind, the world feels different to me. I often feel like you all live in the true world of the living, and I live in dark world of the dead... Certain voices have made me feel close before, close to the living world you all occupy, but... Hearing your voice, it's like nothing I've ever known before. It makes me feel like I finally have a reason to belong in this world, and you're the reason. Your voice just makes me feel so... So..." How to explain it. How to make it make sense to her when it didn't even make sense to him...

"Connected?" She suddenly spoke up, her eyes misty and her voice clouded and faraway, sounding just like he felt as she explained, "Like we've seen each other before...? Even though we know we haven't, that it can't possibly be... I still can't help but feel like I've seen your eyes before, even though I've never seen eyes like yours in all my life..."

He leaned forward, reached out for her. She took his hand and held it in both of hers, caressing it. He cupped the other hand around those two, and added, "I feel that way too, but for your voice. I swear I feel like I've heard your voice before, even though I know I never have. I'm sorry if this is a bit much, it must be, but... I feel like I even met you before, knew you before. Ever since I met you I've missed you. Everyone else in my life, I learn to let go. When you're blind, anyone can walk away from you at any time, but you... I just couldn't bear how much I missed your voice. I'd do anything to be able to hear your voice as often as possible. Even though I'm blind, and lame, I swear I'll find a way to help you and your loved ones live a better life. Please just give me a little time, I promise I'll find a way..."

Mio sniffled after hearing his speech. "Sweet dear man... I know no man has ever made that promise before has meant it, but... You do. I know you mean it... But I can't let you put yourself at risk for me. It would mean the world for me just to be able to get to see you from time to time. We can worry about more when we're older, but for now... Tahoumaru? Do you think we could trouble you to allow us to see each other once in a while? I don't mean to trouble you, but it would be so very kind..."

"Please, otouto? Hyakkimaru begged him, for the first time in his life. Despite his blindness he was very self-reliant and usually only asked his mother for help, not Tahoumaru. It made his younger brother feel very important to be asked, and so he nodded right away, choked up.

"Hyakkimaru! Mio! I'll make sure you can meet with each other as often as possible! What you two have is really special, I can tell!" He was really truly touched seeing true love blossom like this for his brother. He was inspired to someday find a special lady for himself, but until then, he was determined to make sure his brother could find that happiness.  
Hyakkimaru nodded and Mio bowed low in thanks. Then his brother's new friend spoke up, "Ah, since we still have some time to visit, Hyakkimaru, would you like me to sing for you? They have instruments I can play for you too, although to be honest, my playing isn't quite as good as my singing..."

"I can play for you." Hyakkimaru immediately offered. "I can't sing at all but I know how to play a few instruments. I can play something while you sing."

She smiled and nodded, "Okay!" And then retrieved a few things nearby. After inspecting them with his hands, Hyakkimaru retrieved a shamisen, and began to slowly play along with Mio's voice, soft and slow and just the slightest bit hesitant at first, but growing with confidence the longer she sang along with Hyakkimaru…

Tahoumaru watched the two, amazed into silence by their harmony. Even though it was a simple song, it was as if the two of them weren't even playing with their hands or their mouths. Hyakkimaru's shamisen sounded more like he was plucking the strings of his own heart for her, and Mio's singing was a chorus coming from her very soul. Tahoumaru had never heard anything so beautiful, so perfectly in tune as the two of them.

They played uninterrupted until their time was finally up, and they were forced to part. Even without seeing her, Hyakkimaru looked at Mio so longingly that she finally threw her arms around him, embracing him close to her. "I'll put my number in your phone, okay? Whenever its safe to, call me, and we can hear each other's voices..."

Tahoumaru helped him put her contact information into his phone, then the two parted ways with one last embrace, and the promise to see each other again soon. And again, and again.

Hyakkimaru didn't care about the trouble he'd get into if he were caught. Now that Mio was in his life, there was no going back. There was no life without her. He had given her his heart completely, she owned it, and it would beat for no one else but her. As far as he was concerned, without her, he had no heart at all...

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

(( The lovers seem to be having a lovely time for now! But trouble is just around the corner! A storm is brewing called Daigo, but another bigger storm named Nui is rumbling just behind him! XD If our soulmates can weather these storms, it should be smooth sailing afterwards~ Please kudo or comment! :D ))


	3. Chapter 3

The past few months had been undoubtedly the happiest in all of Hyakkimaru's sad, troubled life. Thanks to Tahoumaru lending an unexpected hand, not to mention his car and his credit card, Hyakkimaru was able to keep seeing Mio, whose playing and singing kept getting better and more confident every time they were together. Not just the two of them, but everyone around them always felt more at peace whenever they played nearby.

One day they even took a chance and played a bit outside. The very birds in the trees had stopped singing to listen to them instead...

That's when Tahoumaru finally had to tell them, "Mio-san! Brother! You two play music like the angels! You need to share your music with the world! What if you got famous? Then you could use your music to support yourselves instead!"

Mio smiled, and patted his shoulder. "That would be so amazing. I'm sure it couldn't be that easy though..."

Not without an overly-eager little brother willing to procure recording equipment...

Every time Tahoumaru insisted on getting them something or doing something for them, Mio and Hyakkimaru couldn't help but accept gratefully. They were having too much fun and were in too much love to deny him or themselves. But finally, one day, the wrong person caught on to them...

A jealous colleague of Daigo's happened to see his sons out and about with his former favorite escort one day, and decided to try and sabotage the happy couple in an effort to get Mio's attention back on him. A futile effort in her heart, but most definitely fruitful when it came to seeking revenge.

Daigo came home early from work and confronted to two after a date as soon as he heard. He was absolutely furious about his sons going behind his back, and for that WHORE...!

As soon as they stepped inside the house together he seperated them, first shoving Tahoumaru aside, then grabbing Hyakkimaru painfully by the ear, dragging him into the middle of the living room, and throwing him to the floor.

"WHAT?! DID YOU THINK I WOULDN'T FIND OUT?!" He shouted, so that both boys knew immediately what he was talking about. "My coworker told me he saw you two, and I checked with my bank to make sure! Tahoumaru, I expected MUCH better of you! And as for YOU, you damned troublesome cripple...!"

He advanced on Hyakkimaru, who cowered on the floor, trying in vain to hold a hand out in front of him to stop the blows that were soon to come. He couldn't see his father but he could feel his presence, his anger, getting closer...

The back of his father's hand struck his own aside, then began to beat on his face and body while his poor son could do nothing but try and shield his body from the blows continuing to come.

"DAMN USELESS CRIPPLE! YOU'VE BEEN NOTHING BUT A BURDEN YOUR WHOLE LIFE, AND NOW YOU HAVE THE NERVE TO STEAL BEHIND MY BACK?!"

"HUSBAND, PLEASE STOP!" His wife tried to shout at him, mortified and temporarily frozen with fear. Their family had always been a strained and difficult one, but this was too much!

Tahoumaru first tried to intervene, nervously putting his hand on his father's shoulder, "Father please, stop! Hyakkimaru did nothing wrong! I paid for him to see Mio! But father please understand, its not how you think, they're really in love-!"

Hearing that word his father became enraged, turned around and backhanded his previous favorite son. "STUPID BASTARD! YOU THINK A WOMAN LIKE THAT IS CAPABLE OF LOVE? LOVE DOESN'T EVEN EXIST! You marry for what a person can give you! What can a prostitute give you besides a disease, eh?! But then even a so-called respectable woman can end up giving you a useless lying cripple for a firstborn son and a traitor for the second, so what does it even matter?!"

Tahoumaru fell to the floor after that, his face red and turning a little purple. His father had hardly ever hit him before, and never that hard. He was shocked into submission. But Nui was even more shocked than him when Daigo turned on her next, screaming, "I MIGHT AS WELL HAVE MARRIED AN ESCORT FOR THE KIND OF FAMILY YOU GAVE ME! NOW GET THIS WORTHLESS CRIPPLE OUT OF MY HOUSE RIGHT NOW, OR YOU CAN ALL GO WITH HIM!"

His pulled his hand back and aimed it at Nui. He didn't even plan to actually hit her, didn't think he would need to. Daigo really thought that raising his hand to the woman would be all he needed to put her in line, as was usually the case with his dutiful and obedient wife...

He never expected that her hand would suddenly shoot out, slapping him across the face with all of her pent-up strength, all her years of hidden frustration and anger with him coming to the surface of her palm. It happened so fast her face didn't even scrunch up with anger with him until after he had already fallen to the floor. Then the normally docile woman suddenly started to SCREAM at him, "NO, DAMN IT! DAMN YOU! -YOU- GET THE -HELL- OUT! IF YOU EVER RAISE YOUR HANDS AT ANYONE IN THIS FAMILY AGAIN, I'LL -DIVORCE YOU-!"

Daigo's eyes went wide with shock, he even gasped. His normally serene wife was currently exploding on him? Threatening to -divorce- him!? The shame it would bring on them! Wasn't she worried about the shame?! But she wasn't even done yet... "FURTHERMORE! I DON'T KNOW WHAT KIND OF DEMONS YOU MUST HAVE IN YOU, TO MAKE YOU WANT TO HIT YOUR OWN FAMILY, YOUR OWN -DISABLED- SON WHO CAN'T HELP HOW HE WAS BORN, BUT -THEY- CAN GET THE HELL OUT, TOO!"

WHAT! Now she was even comparing him to a DEMON?! That shook something deep down in Daigo, put a mortal fear in him he hadn't felt... Probably ever. But then TAHOUMARU began to yell at him too! "FATHER! You've never treated Hyakkimaru properly! I'm ashamed I didn't notice at first, when I was a child! You said that I deserved more because of my abilities, and that Hyakkimaru could do with less, that he didn't need as much! But that's wrong! He needs more because of how he is, and you shouldn't hold it against him, because he came from you just as much as I did! You're being unfair to my brother! Why can't you just let him be with the woman he loves?! Why can't you do this one thing he asks?! He didn't ask to be born without arms and legs, he didn't ask to be born deaf and blind! He's asked for an intrument and to play with the woman he loves! I'm very sad you don't believe in love father, but don't try to keep us away from finding it just because you couldn't, even with a wife as wonderful and dedicated as our mother right in front of you all these years!"

Having been finally outnumbered, outreasoned, and outclassed, Daigo could do nothing but growl like an angry overgrown bear. "RRR... I'LL BE BACK LATER!" He finally hollered back, but without any bite, scrambling to his feet to get out of the house after the long overdue confrontation.

Now suddenly weak and shaking, Nui started to weep and bent down to inspect her son on the floor. "Hyakkimaru! Are you alright, son? Let me see your poor ear, it's not bleeding is it?"

She was fretting over him as if he were a child again. Hyakkimaru blushed over it, embarrassed. "I'll be okay, mother..."

Now even Tahoumaru was hovering over him, "Here brother, your hearing aid is a little off, let me fix it."

Tahoumaru's hands messed with his ear a bit. Hyakkimaru thanked him, waiting til later to put it back right himself, as it was still a little crooked.

They were quiet for a while. Then at long last, Nui spoke up again, her voice shaking just a little. "All these years... We've focused on what he wanted, at all times. And he never considered what we wanted unless it was something that would make him look good. Well... No more. He can either consider what we want, or he can take care of himself." Nui knew very well it wouldn't take the man long to realize how much he depended on her for domestic tasks and food. He'd either come back, or find some other woman as desperate as she'd been when she'd met him, as a girl barely older than Mio, trying at the time to escape an even more abusive father... She didn't care either way though. True, she didn't wish to face the shame and stigma of divorce... But she'd been secretly preparing for it for years. She had enough money stashed away to start over, Daigo be damned, she might just divorce him anyways...

So, she concluded, "From now on, we live our lives how we want to. You want to be with this girl, Hyakkimaru? Well, I trust you, and I'm sure she's lovely. I want to meet her right away..."

Daigo eventually came back, but things were especially strained after that, and uncomfortably quiet. Nobody talked to him and he didn't talk to anyone else, to apologize or demand apology. The next few months were like living with a stranger in the house. The boys focused on their schoolwork. Hyakkimaru called Mio in secret, though their recording sessions had to be postponed for a little while...

Nui eventually announced one day to her husband that she was seperating from him. Daigo didn't seem to care at first, until Tahoumaru mentioned that he was also going to live with her and Hyakkimaru. Then of course he protested, but since it was Tahoumaru's will and Nui had found a job (and took pictures of the bruises on Hyakkimaru from that day), there wasn't much he could do in the long run. After a few court dates, only Tahoumaru saw or heard from him occasionally a few times after that...

Nui's job was respectful but not excessively glamourous or high-paying. She worked as a simple perfume saleswoman at a local mall. It provided just enough income to get her and her sons into a small low-income apartment. The same one, it turned out, that Mio happened to live in...

And where she was having trouble staying at... Because of the fuss her former client made after she still denied him, after how he had outed and shamed her and her boyfriend, she had been fired from her work as an escort. Now Mio was barely making anything, taking maid work anywhere she could get it just to keep her own apartment paid for. She and the multiple children she cared for were now secretly all living there together, several children in one tiny space, just trying to keep a roof over their heads. A few of the older children had started skipping classes, trying to find jobs to help Mio pay for the apartment and food too...

As busy as she now was, Mio was reluctant at first to rejoin Hyakkimaru's singing sessions, even now that their father was no longer around, she worried that taking too much time away from her work would harm the children. But finally the poor girl allowed herself to have a moment of peace and joy, and while they played their angelic but slightly sad songs of love to each other, Nui and Tahoumaru stood by listening and recording them, recognizing this rare true love when they saw it, just like everyone who saw the video they uploaded also saw it...

They saw how truly in love these two people were, and they saw how Hyakkimaru played his instruments with fake arms and hands, with blind eyes and devices on his ears indicating hearing loss. They were amazed. This man with his disabilities played so well, such hauntingly beautiful tunes, slow but full of meaning and feeling. The beautiful young woman who loved him, with her voice as sweet as her soul was kind. A few unkind people tried to say mean things about her from time to time, but she was never dishonest about her reasons for doing so, and her true beauty and honesty eventually outshined all the ugliness occassional jealous souls tried to dredge up.

Donations started slowly coming in. Local people wanted to help this unique and kindhearted family. Then more and more people followed them, requesting covers of their favorite songs from the pair. Soon people from all over started recognizing them, and the donations made even more than Mio's maid work, so she quit. The kids were able to go back to school too, and after a while, even Mio was able to start catching up on all the work she herself had missed.

She and Hyakkimaru even got to go to a school dance together before graduating. She wore a new red dress, and a bright red flower in her hair. And even though he was blind and never even got to see it himself, Hyakkimaru kept a picture of the two of them together on the cover of his phone, just to show anyone who cared to see what a beautiful girlfriend he had.

A beautiful girlfriend who he dearly hoped to someday call his wife...

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

(( AHAHAHA BITCHSLAPPING AND DUMPING DAIGO WAS AWESOMELY SATISFYING! XD Pretty sure the next chap will be the last, unless I get extra inspiration somewhere! Hope you guys like it and if you do please comment or kudo! :D ))


	4. Chapter 4

(( OKAY so a few things to know first of all! I made a few slight but also kinda big changes to the story! First of all, I initially thought Hyogo and Mutsu were distantly related to Tahoumaru in canon, but then someone showed me some Hyogo/Tahoumaru art and explained that it wasn't the case and well... I decided I'd rather them be boyfriends in this last chapter, so I changed the story so they wouldn't be 'Kissing Cousins', lol. XP XD;;; Second this is pretty much the last chapter, altho I do have an idea or two or few about some spin offs and alternate endings. For example, this chapter took so long bc I initially planned to go with an ending where new technology allows Hyakkimaru to see Mio, but since I'm not good with techno-babble lol, I decided to go with this ending instead, where Mio and Hyakkimaru meet a VERY familiar face from a past life! And no I didn't even try to explain how they got there and back lmao. XP I also might do a Hyogo/Tahou spin-off maybe, or a nsfw alternate ending if that's something people might be interested in... ^^;; IDK. LEMME KNOW. WE'LL SEE, IF I HAVE THE TIME, HAHA... XD;;; ANYWAYS then. Without further ado~! ))

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

"Would you like honey in your tea today, Hyakkimaru dear?"

He smiled, and nodded. "Just a little though. You're already sweet enough..."

Married life for the two of them was always this eternal doting... They'd been through so many hardships, now that they were finally together, they refused to let any bad auras or unkind words pass between them.

It had been that way since day one, when Hyakkimaru had finally and nervously asked her to marry him, with the help of his brother, who had helped him pick out and made sure that he didn't lose the traditional wedding comb and ring - He loved her so much, he got her one of both. Hyakkimaru generally didn't like to hear his Mio cry, but the way she had cried when he slipped that ring into her finger, and that comb into her hair... He would never forget that wonderful sound, and the warm wetness on his cheeks when she kissed him afterwards...

A few years passed by, peaceful as anything. Mio got more and more popular online. People pitying Hyakkimaru was what first got them noticed, but they stayed for the true talent, and Hyakkimaru couldn't blame them. Sometimes he wouldn't even play in the videos himself, but would just stare at his wife longingly with his blind eyes while she sang for him. Some people watched the videos just to see the way he looked at her...

In time Mio began getting offers for small acting and singing roles, which she accepted as long as they didn't take her away from her husband too long. Tahoumaru was happy to help his brother when wifey had to be away, but now that he was no longer under his father's thumb, Tahoumaru had stretched his wings a bit too, and discovered new things about himself that his father would have never allowed. Nowaways he spent most of his free time with his old childhood friend and new boyfriend, his sempai from school, Hyogo...

So obviously Daigo wasn't getting an heir from Tahoumaru, not that they talked to him anymore anyways, and obviously he never expected one from Hyakkimaru, who made it clear to Mio early on that he didn't wish to have children of his own, didn't dare risk having them end up with the same cruel fate he had... She had understood, and agreed. After all, they had plenty of children to take care of already.

But those 'children' of theirs eventually got back onto their own feet as well, and after a few years, even Mio's little brother stretched his wings and flew, finding an apartment of his own. Just like that, Mio and Hyakkimaru were 'alone'.

It was kind of nice, at first. They were long overdue for their romantic alone time, after all, which they took thorough advantage of, though of course they were sure to be careful and well-protected during, too. They soon began to miss the pitter-patter of children's feet, but they still had no desire to bring their own biological children into the world. They did, however, begin considering adoption, especially as Mio started getting more lucrative offers for her undeniable singing talent...

One night Mio was fixing dinner for her husband, who was discussing what he'd been told about the adoption process when he suddenly jumped in alarm to hear his wife scream out. "-! MIO?! WHAT'S GOING ON?" He implored to know, only to feel a strange whoosh of warm and... tingly air? Rush past his face, and then there was two heavy thuds from the middle of the room, as if two bodies had fallen there. What in the world...?!

Mio was so shocked she could barely say anything at first, but then finally she forced her lips to move, and inform her worried husband of what had landed in their living room and made her cry out so, as confusing as it was to admit to it, it was... It was... "It's... YOU?!"

Not exactly him... But it surely looked almost exactly like him, this stranger that had just fallen into thin air. There was a small child with him too, who complained, "Ow ow ow...! Aniki get off, you're on my-Whoa... What IS this place...?"

The child, a female of about eleven or twelve from the looks of it? Began to stare at the surroundings around them. She'd never seen anything like it. Even though Mio and Hyakkimaru didn't live in a mansion, they had acquired a much nicer apartment recently than the one they lived in when they first started out, and Mio had it tastefully decorated, with pictures of the couple, her favorite varieties of red flowers always hanging or otherwise displayed in a vase, and her awards hung modestly on the wall in the hallway.

But then she quickly began to stare at Mio, as soon as she noticed her. The 'other Hyakkimaru' had noticed her from the very start, and was staring just as openly. He apparently... Could see her...?!

Hesitantly, the child spoke up first, tears springing to her eyes. "M-Mio-san... Is that really you...? How are you alive again...? What is this place, where are we? And... W-Why is there another aniki...?"

Mio stared back at the child she'd never seen before, as confused as anything, and now alarmed too, at the direction the line of questioning had gone. There were some real weirdos out there, but... She was just a child, and she was clearly just as alarmed as she was, so... "W-Well, I've always been alive, that I can remember, young one! B-But, I've certainly never seen a body double of my husband, who looks like he could be his twin, except with the arms and legs and eyes he's never had! Who in all the worlds are you two...? How did you get here...?"

The child blinked back at her, "Ah... Oh, right! I'm Dororo, and aniki here is Hyakkimaru! As for how we got here, not too sure, but it probably has something to do with this huge demon aniki was just fighting? Before it died a big scary door opened up outta nowhere and dragged it inside, then a bright light shined on us and the next thing we knew it we were here! ...WAIT." She suddenly choked after the insane explanation as one particularly detail caught hold in her mind. "HUSBAND?! MIO'S ALIVE -AND- YOU TWO ARE M-M-M... MARRIED?!"

That was when Hyakkimaru finally came hobbling over with his cane, slowly making his way over until Mio reached out for his arm and took it, leading him over to lean on her shoulder. "Mio? Are you alright? What's going on..."

Dororo spoke up first, "Whoa... You really do look almost exactly like aniki... Except, what's that thing on your ear? And your eyes, are they still blind...?"

Still blind? What a weird thing to say... "Ah. I'm blind. Always have been, always will be..." Hyakkimaru answered patiently, used to such questions from children. "The device helps me hear, but there's no way to restore my sight, at least just yet. So I guess if I want to see what my unexpected guests look like, I'll have to do this...

Reaching down, Hyakkimaru felt around until his hands reached the child's face, feeling around all over her lips and nose and eyes until the child got embarrassed and pushed his hands away. Then he reached for the man next to him, who waited patiently and curiously while Hyakkimaru repeated the process with him. "Amazing..." He finally mumbled, taking back his hands to touch his own face, just to make sure. "He really does look just like me..."

Eerily quiet, the other man repeated his actions, touching and feeling all over his face, even though he could see it for himself now. "Just like me... Me. Hyakkimaru..."

He quickly lost interest in viewing his own face though, and moved on to staring at Mio instead. Staring at her... Sadly. Longingly. He almost hesitated to touch her, but was soon unable to help himself. Reaching out, he cupped both sides of her cheek, ignoring the slight cry of shock she let out, and brought his forehead in close against hers, rubbing back and forth several times. "...Mio... Alive... I can see Mio... Mio, so beautiful..."

She allowed it for a moment, understanding the basics of the situation at least. But with her husband nearby she quickly took his hands away, and mumbled back, "Aah, well... I'm not sure what to do about you two in the long run, but in the meantime, I guess you can stay a few days, hopefully until maybe another one of those strange portals shows up to take you back home? But in the meantime... Hnngh...!"

Mio couldn't bear it anymore... She suddenly lifted Dororo up in the air, surprising both Hyakkimarus almost as much as Dororo, who exclaimed, "Uwa-!? W-What the-?!"

Mio explained, looking her up and down. "YOU! I've never SEEN such a skinny child! And I WAS a skinny child! I've been around skinny children all my life and you're STILL the skinniest child I've ever seen! We need to do something about you! RIGHT. NOW. What do you like, okonomiyaki, tonkatsu, dango? Ramen? A sandwich?" Flabbergasted by all the choices so generously offered, Dororo made noiseless mouth movements in shock, until Mio finally sighed and took her hand, "Oh forget it, just follow me into the kitchen and point at what you want, hurry!"

Both Hyakkimaru's followed after her to 'watch', even though only one could see what was going on. Mio was opening all the cabinets, plus the fridge and freezer doors. "Go on, pick anything you like! I just went food shopping and I can get more later!"

Even knowing this Dororo couldn't decide, too overwhelmed by it all. She turned around and around. Food, food in every corner! Every kind of food imaginable! Mostly a lot of food she didn't even know what it WAS, so how could she choose? "Ah...? Uuhhm...?"

Finally Mio got it and stepped in to help the poor child, first reaching for a few jars in the cabinet. "Here - Peanut butter and strawberry jelly, all kids love that right? Or do you prefer peanut butter and honey sandwiches? I've got honey too! And nice healthy all wheat bread~" She took out a knife and began to spread the jam and nut butter over a slice of bread, then squeezed a little honey over it for good measure, folded it, and handed it to the child. "Here, start with that!"

Dororo took the little sandwich as if she had been handed a sacred religious relic. "I can... Really eat this...?" She looked up with slightly wet eyes.

Mio suddenly worried, "...Well, of course, as long as you're not allergic to peanuts or strawberries, right-? WAIT, I CAN MAKE A SESAME BUTTER AND GRAPE JELLY ONE INSTEAD, AAH-!"

Thankfully Dororo did not proceed to puff up and die, because the very next second the sticky little roll had half it's contents consumed in one bite. And Dororo was suddenly sure she and her Aniki must have already died somehow, because surely this was heaven...

Dororo cried a little while eating the rest of the sandwich, a little sad to be apparently dead but grateful for the heavenly feast and wondering when mama and papa would show up, otherwise silent while Mio sighed with relief and then made her another sandwich, opened a bag of chips for her to snack on while she cooked, and then proceeded to start cooking up all other kinds of things on the stove.

Future Hyakki decided to try to talk to his ancestor in the meantime, "So... You can see? But... Poor Mio is no longer alive in your world? I must confess... I'd give up almost anything to be able to see... Anything but her. Because if she wasn't there for me to see, there would be no point..."

A small, sad smile tugged at the other Hyakkimaru's lips. "I'm... Happy, to be able to see Mio again... To be able to see her, at all. I couldn't see her then. I didn't have my eyes back yet. I could only hear her voice. Her song..."

How he longed to hear her song again... but his future counterpart was a little more focused on another part of all that. "Didn't have your eyes back yet...? What...?" These guys were so weird...

Past Hyakki proceeded to demonstrate just how much by suddenly spilling the truth, "My limbs, eyes, ears, and all other body parts were taken by demons when I was a baby. My own father traded them away for power and prosperity. I survived and grew up and was given a new body made of doll parts by my mama. With it I fought the demons and got my old body back, one piece at a time..."

"...Uh..." Sheesh! What on earth could he even say to something like that? He definitely believed him though, that sounded like something his father would do... "Wow, thought I had it bad... Ah!" He suddenly sniffed, desperately looking for a distraction. "Is that okonomiyaki you're making, Mio? You guys are gonna love Mio's okonomiyaki!"

Admittedly it was easy to be distracted by that frying savory pancake batter-and-veggies scent wafting in the air. "...Smells good." Past Hyakki agreed, and leaned against the counter to wait for it. Dororo offered him some of the bbq chips, and he took a couple, but otherwise let her happily crunch down the whole bag.

Mio soon had a plate for everyone with a large fried pancake mixed with various vegetables and crisscrossed with several sauces, as well as some browned hamburger patties. That child looked like she'd never even heard of protein...

Dororo managed to slow down at least a little bit to eat her plate since she'd consumed her snacks, but she still hummed and made other happy noises while eating. Past Hyakkimaru seemed to be entranced with the patterns of sauce Mio had made across it, looking at the criss-cross shapes for a while, then poking at it with the fork a while before eating it. He always made sure to look at and smell his food before eating it. To really appreciate it.

But naturally, his eyes soon went back to her, enjoying the food whilst also taking in the view... Mio noticed his staring, but didn't mention it. Perhaps some might consider it rude, but she knew he had his reasons, and at least her dear husband couldn't see him staring, she reasoned. Actually, he could always feel when another man had his eyes on her, even if he couldn't see, but he also understood and declined to mention it.

Dororo let out a great, heavy sigh of satisfaction as she finished her plate and carefully put the fancy dish back up on the counter. "Uwaaaa~! That was SO good! One of the best things I've ever eaten in my whole life! Thank you, neechan~!"

Past-Hyakki put his dish on top of hers, and gave Mio a low bow of appreciation. "It was very delicious. Thank you, Mio..."

Mio bowed back modestly. "Oh, thank you! You're both very welcome! Would you two perhaps like to take a bath now that you've eaten? The bathroom is just the first door on the left down this cooridor." She told them, pointing the hallway out.

They both went into the bathroom at once. Confused, Mio followed them, wondering aloud, "Ah, do you two. need help...?"

Dororo blinked back at her."Neechan, what is all this stuff...? How are me and aniki supposed to take a bath...?"

Mio blinked owlishly, "Well? Certainly not together! My, my! You two really are from another time and place, aren't you...? Well, in any case, here Dororo, I can show you two use it. Afterwards you can use it first, and then Hyakkimaru can take a bath after you. It's cleaner not to share bathwater after all!"

Dororo was the one to blink like an owl at her now, "If you say so, neechan...?" What weird stuff they made fusses over in the future. Or in heaven...? Well, wherever it was she was now...

Helping to run her a nice warm bath and adding a strawberry scented bath bomb to make it sweet and fizzy, she then left the child alone after explaining where the towels were, and took her clothes, newer kimonos that Prince Tahoumaru of the past had recently gifted to them when they began living with him after the wars had ended, to the laundry room to be washed. After she and Hyakkimaru were done with their baths, they waited in their towels until their clothes were dry, and then they marveled at how fresh they smelled and how warm the heated fabric felt on their skin.

After the hot meal and the warm bath and in their dryer-fresh clothes, the two of them were ready to rest. Mio prepared their guest bedroom for them, but then she remembered there was only one bed. "Oh... Well, Dororo, you can go ahead and sleep in here. Hyakkimaru, you don't mind sleeping in the living room, right?"

Again, they found it strange, but it apparently was the custom in this excessive future for people not to share things in order to stay more clean. It definitely baffled Dororo, used to sharing every little scrap of anything there was, but she didn't wish to offend her kind hosts, and accepted their hospitality on their terms even if she found it to be more than a bit too much. Plus, even though she was young, she kind of got that her aniki might want to talk to this Mio by himself, so she tucked into the abnormally soft matress and under the cloud-like blankets, whispering to them as she drifted off right away, "Goodnight aniki, goodnight Mio..."

Following them back into the main room, the Hyakkimaru of the past sat next to his counterpart on the couch while Mio prepared a bed for him on the floor with extra pillows and blankets. When she was done with it she sat down next to her husband, and the two of them regarded Hyakkimaru, who could feel that they had something to say to him.

Mio was shy, so her husband spoke up for them, "We were talking, Hyakkimaru... Mio and I feel that there must be some kind of reason the cosmos saw fit to bring us together. And we've both come to believe it's this: Even though she's not the same as the Mio you knew... Perhaps it would be good for your heart to have some closure, and say to her what you wish you could have said to your own Mio..."

Mio nodded in agreement with her husband's explanation, adding, "Of course if you don't want to that's completely okay! I understand if I might not suffice, but if there's anything I can do to help, please let me know..."

The ancestral soul peered down at her intensely. It didn't take him longer than a second to know what he wanted to say to her, "Just... I'm sorry... I'm just so sorry I couldn't save you..."

Mio's heart ached for him. She quickly scooted closer to the other man, and carefully wrapped her arms around him in support. "I know she knew you would have done anything to save her if you could have..."

He bent his head down into her embrace. A few small tears welled up in his eyes and soaked into her blouse. After a moment of embracing, he pulled back a bit, asking hesitantly, "Mio... May I please ask... Would you be willing to sing something for me? That old song about the red flower. It's been echoing in my head for so many years... Sing it for me, please?"

She'd sung a hundred or more songs since then, but she knew exactly which song he was talking about. The song that had brought them together... Apparently not for the first time... "Of course, Hyakkimaru... Listen closely now..." She didn't have to tell him that, though. All of his attention, every one of his senses, were focused on her...

She sang the old words for him, and the memory came alive in his mind again. The very same song from all those years ago. The very same voice. But with a new beautiful visage to accompany it. A new meaning to the color red. New volume to enlighten the ghostly old echo...

Tears welled up in his eyes and spilled down his cheeks, even though he stared at her, unblinking. He couldn't bear to look away. The song itself was so lovely, but the way her smiling face looked while she sang... He felt so blessed. He felt as if a long-dead part of himself had been brought back to life...

She finally paused after reciting it for the fifth time, reaching out to wipe away the tears spilling down his cheeks. "...It doesn't make you sad, does it...?"

He shook his head slowly in her hands. "I mean..." He then amended, and admitted, "It does a little... But It makes me much more glad to get to hear it again... Ah... Mio, would you... Would you allow me to say one last strange thing...?"

She took her hand back and nodded to him, then replaced her hand, not to wipe away tears from his now dried face, but to stroke his cheek and jaw reassuringly. "Anything..."

He placed a hand over hers, his eyes locked on hers... "I... Didn't get to know you... That is, I didn't get to know her very long... But I loved her... I love you, Mio..."

A gasp caught in her throat, deeply touched by his words. She was a little choked up at first, but she knew just what she had to say once she could do so, "Hyakkimaru... I love you too. And... I will always love you, even into our next lives. I promise. Just remember my voice, and we'll find each other again..."

She brought him in close, and hugged him tight. Her husband came around after a moment, feeling his hands over their shoulders until he had wrapped both of his arms around the two of them. They held on until Past Hyakkimaru's subtle shivering subsided, then finally slowly parted from him.

Future Hyakkimaru then held out a hand for his wife, "It's late darling. We should rest now..."

She nodded, rising to her feet again. But before taking her leave entirely, she fluffed up the pillow for their special guest, and gave him a quick peck of a kiss on the forehead. After that she and her husband retired to the master bedroom, and their guest soon went to sleep too, holding his hand near his forehead in amazement...

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Mio only slept a little bit, could hardly keep her eyes closed. It had been a while since they'd had guests over, and certainly never guests as strange as these. She found herself waking extra-extra early just to check that they were still there and that it wasn't all a dream. She was very surprised to see them still sleeping where she left them.

Unable to sleep any longer herself, as soon as the local shops were open she went out. Her mind had been racing all night. She went to the nearest mega-market as soon as it opened at the crack of dawn, and got a couple dozen things.

First of all, she got two plain drawstring cloth sacks. After tearing and cutting off their tags, she then bought various important essential items to fill them with, not souveniers, but things that could potentially save their lives. In Dororo's bag, she filled it with things she knew a female in the past would find extremely useful. Mio couldn't be sure how Dororo might feel about her gender later or how she might choose to express it, but she worried for the young girl as a fellow female. She wasn't sure how her alternate self had died, perhaps violently from the sounds of it, but also perhaps of some kind of female-specific ailment, as many women tended to die from back then, or perhaps just a disease in general. She hoped to help Dororo and Hyakkimaru avoid such fates as long as she could, but also, she had to be careful about what she sent to the past...

Dororo would soon start a cycle. Females in the past were often woefully unprepared for it in their times. Mio was determined to find a way to help with it as efficiently as possible. Pads and tampons were going to be no help of course, there was no way to give her a lifetime supply in a single sack. There was, however, new kinds of underwear designed to be used on your period, washed, and reused. They would be much more convenient, comfortable and hygienic than old rags. Mio made sure to get her a few pairs for her current size up, and a few more in the next sizes up from there, hoping that they would help her to hide her periods all throughout her life, until she no longer had to worry about them. She also included a few pregnancy tests and a couple bottles of prenatal vitamins for the future, just to be safe. In addition to all that, though she knew she ought not to, she also knew it was probably the most important, and added a very soft little calico kitten foam squish toy. Tags removed from all.

Mio also made sure to pack several different kinds of commonly needed medications in the second sack for Hyakkimaru. Several bottles of painkillers and cold and flu pills, and a few bottles of vitamins, with instructions to keep those around just in case there was a time of famine. Blushing heavily and hiding them well, she also added a few packages of condoms in Hyakkimaru's bag as well, not a lifetime supply true, but hopefully enough to keep him safe until he found a new person to love, as she dearly wished he still would. She removed the labels from all the bottles and instead wrote her own instructions about what each was used for, how much to take, and instructions to dig a deep hole and bury the bottles and packages and all other things they would no longer need to use where no one would find the evidence, and try not to use them around others, or else only someone they trusted with their lives.

She then got one last thing for Hyakkimaru's sack, and took them home, where her husband and guests were just barely waking up.

She prepared them all some chocolate crepes with a blackberry-lavender cream and fresh raspberries for breakfast. Before she let Dororo eat with the others, she took her aside and gave her a brief explanation of the contents of her sack and what they were for, and how and when she would have to use them, if she ever needed to. The young girl blushed heavily during the explanation and squirmed a bit, but she realized the magnitude of the importance of what Mio was sharing with her, and took her sack gratefully, nodding that she understood. The squishy toy helped her calm down and stopped blushing too, it turned out...

She then allowed Dororo the rejoin the others at the breakfast table, and while she tucked into her food, she pulled Hyakkimaru aside too and briefly explained the different medicines, and gave him a piece of paper with all the instructions written on it. Then she pulled out Hyakkimaru's present... Of course he was a little old for a squishy toy (there was still one in his sack for him to find later though, a little red fox) and though Mio knew he would most like to be able to bring her voice with him, there was just no feasible way to do it. A CD player was far too advanced a form of technology to risk sending back, and the batteries wouldn't last long anyways. But then she got another idea...

Pulling the flute she'd gotten him out of his sack, a simple but finely crafted bamboo wind instrument, she placed it up to her lips, and played out her song onto the notes of the flute instead. She played it a few more times, showing him where to put his fingers, and then watching with pride as he successfully recreated it, "Ah! That's it! Now, Hyakkimaru and Dororo, just so you know, we'll help you stay as long as you need, but if you ever do find a way back to your own place and time, and you're able to take these with you, try to do so. They might be very important later. And Hyakkimaru, that flute, or any other... Even if you can't hear my voice, if you play the song you can think of me, right? I hope it would comfort you..."

Past Hyakkimaru had been rather quiet after the flute song and during Mio's explanation. But then he finally drew a deep breath in and sighed it out, looking away from Mio's generous offering with shame. "...I have a confession to make... Every since we came here, I've known from the start that I had the power to take us back home whenever I willed it, but that once I did, I could never go back. It was whispered in my ear as the dying breath of the last demon I killed. When I got here, and realized Mio was alive here... I didn't want to go back. Part of me, of course, still doesn't. But... We cannot impose on you and make a burden of ourselves here, and we cannot risk that we are not still needed in our own timeline, as we most assuredly are. And Dororo, your family fortune... We must make sure it doesn't fall to the wrong hands. If it did, it might have huge negative consequences for history. So we must go back soon, and collect it like you intended..."

Dororo gulped her food and nodded, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. "Aniki... Are you sure though? You won't be lonely...?"

Hyakkimaru smiled back at her, and answered very simply, "No. I have you."

The tears slipped, and she sniffled and hiccupped, wiping them away on the back of her wrist. After finally composing herself a couple minutes later, she nodded. "Okay... But let me finish my breakfast first!" Obviously she wasn't leaving that behind.

After demolishing every last bite, the pair thanked their generous hosts and shared embraces. Dororo especially had a hard time wanting to part from Mio, her tears refusing to keep dry... "I can't believe we're really never going to see each other again after this..."

Mio ruffled her hair, bent down and kissed her forehead. "Don't be sad, Dororo. I truly believe with all my heart that we'll meet again someday... After all, we already did, didn't we?"

Dororo mustered up a smile hearing her make that point. The world worked in mysterious ways sometimes... And besides, she knew someone else would miss Mio even more than her...

Mio came over to him next. Raised her hand up and stroked his cheek. "We'll definitely meet again someday too... Just remember my song, and listen closely. You'll find me again that way..."

He nodded, lips tight. Throat tighter. After a moment he managed to tell her at last, and for the last time in a long while, "I'll definitely find you again. However long it takes... Because... A love like yours is worth waiting for, searching for. Even if its hundreds, or even thousands of years... Thank you, Mio. For everything, but especially for your song... I feel like hearing it again has brought a part of my soul back to life that I thought was dead forever. I swear I'll never forget, and I swear I'll find you again..."

"You will..." Mio encouraged him sweetly.

Much more confident, his counterpart smiled surely at him. "You definitely will."

His past self stared at the blind, disabled man, and his genuinely lighthearted smile, not curious at all looking at him. No, it made perfect sense how he could still be so happy in this lifetime despite living with many of the same awful limitations. Because when you're with the one you love most, you feel like your heart could fly... And when you can fly, who cares if it hurts to walk?

He looked back down to Dororo, and she looked back up at him. He nodded to her, and they both closed their eyes, and whispered, "Goodbye..."

In a whoosh of wind that shouldn't have come from anywhere in their apartment with no doors or windows open, the two of them were gone. Disappeared just as suddenly as they came, although two Autumn-red maple leaves were spirited in their place, floating down to the floor. It was the middle of Spring outside...

Mio picked up the leaves, and put them aside to press and keep in a book. She hummed her old song as she put them away, letting the soft sound flow like a trail to lead her husband to where she was, as she often did. She soon felt him embracing her from behind, eager for her undevoted attention again. "He's right. You'd be worth waiting hundreds or even thousands of years for... But luckily, we don't have to wait anymore..."

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The lady they met at the adoption agency seemed kind of nervous, Mio noticed... She couldn't hide it, so she soon opted to just explain, "Thank you two for coming! I wanted you to know, that I think I may have possibly found the perfect child for you! Of course you're free to decline if you like, but you mentioned on your application that you were open to adopting disabled children? And I figured that a child like this would be very much in need of a parent who understands the kind of pain he's been through... His name is Roro, you see, and he was orphaned in a car crash that killed his parents and took one of his arms. He's in this room here..."

She led them up to a room with a large window. Mio barely looked at the child for a second, gasped loudly, began to cry, and nodded right away. She grasped Hyakkimaru by the arm and kissed his cheek and the corner of his smiling lips, whispering excitedly into his ear, "It's... It's him! It's him, Hyakkimaru! He's the one we've been waiting for, I just know it!"

The adoption worker smiled and sniffled, patting her own back for another job well done. Not knowing that fate itself had a hand in this. She was sure she'd seen many similar touching first meetings, but truthfully... She'd never witnessed a reunion quite like this...

One of angels returned to life...

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(( ~THE END ~ I hope you guys liked it! If I get hella busy with other stuff this is otherwise the end of this story! I think this is the happy ending all three of these sweeties deserve, hehehe. :D Buuuut do lemme know if the other ideas sound good too! Maybe I might put em on my very long to-do list! MAYBE. XD Please comment and/or kudo, and thanks for reading! ))


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